I built a birdhouse using cedar wood. is it necessary to stain it? or leave it natural?

Oil based paints and varnishes should be thinned ideally with turpentine, turpentine substitute (white spirit) or with a propriety thinner for synthetic coach finishes.

Depending on the spray system you are using will depend how much thinning is needed - usually no more than 10% unless a low pressure compressed air or airless sprayer is used. Accuracy produces the best results and accuracy can only be achieved using manufacturer's recommendations and a viscosity cup and a clock or watch with a second hand.

One word of warning; when spraying oil based or synthetic finishes the overspray or spray mist remains "wet" for a considerable time and will adhere to whatever it touches or settles on including skin and nose hair. A Tyvek overall with a close fitting hood is not expensive and these days a decent filter mask is fairly inexpensive.

well 1st you need to determine what stains are made from ? if there a food stain then there most likely made from a grease of some sort , if this is so then denatured alcohol will take them off (with a bit of rubbing ) if there a rust or mildew stain then you'll have to use something stronger like muriatic acid (diluted w water 50/50) also note never add water to acid but instead add acid to water (yes it makes a huge difference) , this is dangerous stuff and all safe precautions need to be taken with it , this will also require all the teak oil finish to be reapplied after acid is neutralized with say baking soda and water (paste) and dried in air as this rough chemical will remove all the woods natural oils

while teak is a nice wood to have (beautiful looking) when something like this happens to it , it sure is a expensive wood to maintain

Try these links:
How to Stain Wood

What wood preparation for staining

How To Stain Wood How to apply wood stain and get an even finish using...

There are expensive birdhouses but you can get very basic ones for
around $5 upwards and i think it's a great way to get kids into
nature.
Check out this link to amazon;http://www.amazon.com/b?node=553634

I heard that some pallet wood has been treated with arsenic so I'd stay away...

Wooden dog houses are most likely to be made out of cedar wood. Cedar is very durable and maintenance-free. Compared to other types of wood (like pine), cedar is much more resistance to decay.

I was a painting contractor for last 10 years of my work career.

If you are using HVLC cup gun, you will have to select correct tip,
You will need to thin the latex 50-50 with water, and keep paint strained to keep out all clogging.
If the tip is not reversible, then expect disassemble each time clog happens.
And you will be continually re-filling the cup.
And then if the surface is rough, the spray won't flow into the holes.
You have a mess coming your way.

Painting a fence: A roller is the only way to paint/stain rough surface.
Buy big hairy 1" roller cover from Sherwin Williams. Don't get the cheapo 1/4" thick roller cover because it doesn't hold any paint. The big roller holds a big volume of paint.

Now if fence is rough, like cedar, you need to thin the stain.
About 1.5 gallon water per 5 of stain ... and suddenly you have 6-1/2 gallons of stain which means you bought too many gallons of stain.
So don't overbuy the stain. And pick up 2 plastic bucket for mixing.
Empty gallon of stain into mixing bucket > put water into empty gallon > put lid on gallon and shake up > pour water into mixing bucket with stain > to mix: pour mixing bucket of stain back and forth between other mixing bucket until stain is mixed. Do this work on the grass where it won't run out onto concrete surface.

Put roller and frame on a wood pole that you took off the push broom. Now roll that stain onto every surface the roller can touch. Think of it like picking up quarters. If it was money, could you get the roller on that spot >> the answer is yes. Don't try to smooth it out and make pretty. Throw the stain on any way the roller can turn. Customers used to call that 'slapping it on' and I used to say, 'that's how it works, lady.'

Use a piece of masonite at the bottom. If you get stain on anything, wash it off immediately and use a wire brush on concrete surface or towel on smooth surface.

Wait for a day, because stain looks 100% better next day. And then go back with a brush and hit the spots you couldn't get with the roller. It will be faster and cheaper and fewer headaches than trying to spray latex stain with a HVLP cup gun.

To clean the roller: Leave it on the roller frame and wood stick. Turn on water hose and get the roller spinning until it's clean. Do this away from everything you don't want stain on.

Wood glue sticks are hot glue sticks which are specifically designed for use with wood (such as for glueing together a birdhouse).

Hello,

When I recoat my outside wooden seating I use Danish Oil and if the colour has faded I add a small amount of stain of a suitable colour. You could try it with the linseed oil but the Danish oil dries to a hard coating and will build up if several coats are used, allow time to dry between coats.

Regards
Alan Hood
ami-man

It's possible. You might have to stain it to match the color, and as for the bond strength, it will depend on how clean your joint is to begin with, and how well that particular filler holds up under the environmental changes decks are subject to. The problem is that the wood expands and contracts with changes in humidity, and the more durable fillers tend not to. So while the filler is impervious to water, the joint could fail. It depends to some extent on what you mean by chips. A dent or hole-like patch that's completely surrounded will hold better in general than an exposed edge, and long grain better than end grain. And keep the size of the patches to a minimum. But it's worth a try, I say. The alternative is to use a waterproof glue and make patch pieces of cedar to glue in. You can sometimes shave the chip flat with a sharp chisel to make a good glue joint for the patch.
In either case, try to blow it out with compressed air or at least vacuum before bonding, and let it cure completely before staining or sealing. Make a test area on a piece of scrap to help get your color match right.

I hope this information allows you to resolve this issue. If you need further assistance, please post back with a comment to this thread.
If I've managed to answer your question or solve a problem, please take a moment to kindly rate this post....thanks!